Thursday, August 30, 2012

How to enhance eyes without the use of makeup? How about color contacts AND glasses!

On lips: Revlon Lip Butter in Sweet Tart

Ok, I'm doing something I'm TOTALLY not supposed to. I'm wearing prescription glasses over my prescription contacts. My optometrist would be so mad! Lol. I only did it for show. If you want to wear color contacts under glasses, make sure you're either wearing plano (no prescription) contacts under prescription glasses or wearing plano glasses over prescription contacts. Otherwise you won't be seeing very well at all!

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Lately, I've been experimenting with a more literally "cat-eye" look, you know, the feline-esque Cleopatra eyeliner. For the fun of it, I broke out some Urban Decay makeup that has been, sadly, collecting dust in my train case(es). Seriously, I have too much makeup...but I'm sure all of us have that problem. (or else y'all wouldn't be reading me) I love my Urban Decay...it's just that I have so much of it, it's hard to give all my palettes and products equal quality time! This is what I did with my sudden burst of (colorful) creative inspiration:

- After applying primer, I brushed Suspect to my entire top and bottom lid and highlighted my brow arch with Verve.

- Then I used black eyeliner to line my eyes in a leonine, Cleopatra-style shape.

- Next, I traced my top lash line eyeliner with Woodstock liquid eyeliner.

- My final step was to accent Woodstock with Heavy Metal glitter eyeliner in Catfight.

Despite the pop of hot pink, this look is very wearable. Here, Woodstock is more of an accent than a full-on color barrage. If you're curious to experiment with sparkle and bright hues, this is a good way to do so without looking overly conspicuous. I imagine this eye style would look smashing in gold or turquoise as well, or whatever your favorite color is!

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Hi! Just wanted to show off some new-ish nail polish. Cinderella, by Sinful Colors. I said "new-ish" because I actually purchased it about 2 months ago and lost it during the move to my new house. I was unpacking some leftover boxes and found it a few days ago. Go figure!

Love the name. You can probably figure out the obvious pun, lol! Cinderella is a pale, fairytale-ish blue, very reminiscent of the shade portrayed in Walt Disney's classic Cinderella. (technically, I think the original film's dress was silver/white, but these days people remember it as blue) Anyways, it's fairly sheer with pretty pink iridescent shimmer throughout. I had to apply about 3 coats to get decently solid coverage. A very cute, feminine, and wearable color. Unusual in that it's blue, but not in a conspicuous way.

Monday, August 27, 2012

Ok, so from yesterday's post, everyone has learned that I recently got an eye exam and a new prescription for glasses and contact lenses. You all saw my contact lenses, so today, I wanted to introduce you to my new glasses! Check me out:

Is it obvious that I'm totally in love with them? Call them "hipster" or whatever, but I think they're just too cute! And, unlike the wannabe wayfarers I featured in a previous post, they're actually functional since the lenses have a prescription in them, albeit small. (-0.25DS in both eyes, lol)

I got these babies from www.Coastal.com. UH-MA-ZING is all I can say! Ok, that's not ALL I can say. I know what you're thinking: "Buying prescription glasses online? Are you insane?!". Eh, maybe a little. I was skeptical at first too, but Coastal is running a number of incredible promotions right now for new customers and for back-to-school so I thought I'd take a leap and give them a try. I'm soooooooooooooo glad that I did!

First off, the glasses are gorgeous! The style and fit is amazing! I have a hard time finding plastic frames that fit the bridge of my nose correctly and this is one of the few that works! I also upgraded my lenses to include anti-reflective coating, UV protection, and anti-scratch coating and everything, including shipping and handling, cost me a fraction of a fraction of what I would pay at my local optometry office. I would know, I'm employed by an optometry office as an optometric assistant! :D

On top of that, service and shipping is conducted at lightning speeds! I ordered these on a Monday night and received them Friday afternoon of the same week...what is that, like, 3 business days? Even the wonderful office that I work at requires 7-10 working days to complete orders. It really boggles the mind how Coastal does it!

Ooh...the blue box!

Oh, and as if gorgeous glasses delivered to my door at the speed of light wasn't enough, I also received a complimentary hard case as well as a cleaning and tightening kit with my order!

How can this possibly get better? I'll tell you how! You have 366 days to decide whether or not you want to keep them. If you'd like a refund or exchange, simply send them back to Coastal...they'll pay for return shipping!

Seriously folks. I have examined this from every angle possible and I cannot see how anyone can lose! I also can't see why I would go anywhere else for glasses from now on! For those of you in need of vision correction, get thee to Coastal pronto! Just be sure you have a valid eyeglass prescription on hand as well as your P.D. Not sure what that is? It's the distance measured between your pupils which is required to center your prescription. Your optometry office should take this measurement during your exam and would be able to provide it for you.

Hope some of you found this post useful as well as (somewhat) entertaining! Happy Monday to all!

Sunday, August 26, 2012

You all know that I love changing my look on a day-to-day basis by applying makeup to my face. Well, another way to change up your look is to change the color of your eyes! I like adding a little color to my lid, but with color contact lenses, I can add a little color to my eyes as well. :)

Sure, color contacts are nothing new. They're just something I don't play around with that much because: A) I have very sensitive eyes. B) I barely have a prescription (-0.25 in both eyes) C) Because my vision is near 20/20, I don't get eye exams often and therefore don't get fitted for contact lenses often. FYI, getting fitted for contact lenses if VERY important for your eye health. I know that there are OTC contacts that you can buy online, but without a proper fitting from an eyecare professional, you can sorely damage your eyes, therefore your vision, so be warned!

About a week ago, I got an eye exam from my optometrist and received a contact lens fitting too. After not wearing color contacts for at least 3-4 years now, I felt like trying them again. Of course I would choose among the most unnatural colors...what's the fun in going through the trouble of wearing contacts if you can't look completely eccentric? I went with Brilliant Blue by Freshlook Colorblends. It's a part of their Vibrant Views collection, a new selection of super-vivid eye colors. Freshlook has been known in the past to create more natural colors via Colorblends, but I guess you just have to roll with the times...people want more extreme these days!

I just wanted to share with you guys what the contacts look like with and without eye makeup so you can compare the difference in looks. Also, how completely cool they look on a southeast Asian gal who feels ridiculously glamorous in bright blue eyes!

I think they stand out more without eye makeup, since the blue is not competing with the color of the shadows. I guess color contacts are an even easier way of dressing up the eyes with as little effort as possible!

Pros:

- a simple way to jazz up your eyes

- lots of color possibilities

Cons:

- I can still feel them! It takes getting used to, but I hate the feeling of having something in my eye. It doesn't hurt, but is a little annoying.

- The ring of color sometimes obstructs my vision, causing some blur, when my pupils are more dilated, ie. at night. Not too big of a deal though.

All in all, I really love them. I generally don't wear them for more than 1-2 hours at a time. I think I want to get them in Gemstone Green as well, hehe. I think that would look pretty cool. These are also great accessories for an ethereal photo shoot!

Friday, August 24, 2012

Howdy friends! I've missed you all so much! It's been one of those weeks...maybe I'm down because all the parties are over, I'm not quite sure, but I'm stuck in the doldrums right now. Just the feeling of "ennui", I guess. You know, being a little depressed and not knowing why. *sigh* I thought that maybe doing a post would cheer me up a little. Here is a look that I created using Urban Decay's Goddess eyeshadow:

Sorry the lighting and coloring is totally off! I'm trying to create a workspace in my new house with more even and natural lighting so that I can give you guys more consistent photography. Anyhoo...this look is simple and glamorous! How can you not be glamorous when using an eyeshadow called Goddess? Haha. I just applied Goddess to my entire lid, added some black shadow to the outer corners, lined my top and bottom lash lines, accented my top lash line with blue glitter eyeliner and dusted a little more Goddess along my bottom lash liner. Done!

Hope everyone is enjoying their Friday! (more of a Thursday for me since I have work tomorrow...boo!)

Monday, August 20, 2012

Wow, so sorry I've been absent these last few days, but it's been the busiest weekend of the year for me, thus far. I partied to the tune of 4 birthdays, starting with Friday night. My sisters have back-to-back birthdays on the 18th and 19th, and then two dear friends of mine had their birthdays this weekend too. It's been non-stop since Friday and still another to go tonight, lol!

We had all-you-can eat Korean bbq on Friday night, all-you-can-eat Shabu Shabu on Saturday night, and then yummy Mexican food and margaritas on Sunday night. Tons of fun, to be sure, but I don't think my body can handle much more eating, drinking, and being merry. I'm looking forward to getting back to my healthy eating and workout routine this week...after tonight's final birthday dinner party, that is. :D

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Good morning (nearly afternoon)! Just thought I'd share some lippy swatches from my UD haul the other day. First up, UD lipstick in Midnight Cowboy:

I got a sample of this lipstick ages ago and fell in love with it! I
used up mine and then stole my sister's. Now that it's on sale, I got a
full-sized one just for me! Midnight Cowboy is a sheer, nude, sparkly
lipstick that I love wearing alone when I'm rockin' a super-sultry,
smokey eye for the evening. Smells great too! Like caramel creme
brulee!

Next is UD's Pocket Rocket lip gloss in Colin:

Colin is a sheer, warm red gloss. There actually aren't any sparkles in it, the glitter is leftovers that I couldn't remove from Midnight Cowboy, lol. But you get the gist of what the color looks like on. It looks very bold in the tube, but is actually very wearable once applied. Smells like strawberry oatmeal...sort of a maple-y berry scent, which I like quite a bit, but the hubby hates. Oh well.

Last up is another UD Pocket Rocket gloss, in James:

James is a hot-pink/fuchsia with iridescent blue shimmer. Again, shocking in the tube, but very sheer and wearable upon application. Same scent as Colin and the rest of the Pocket Rocket glosses, I assume. (FYI, Timothy smells the same as well. Will steal him from my sister to get a swatch for you guys, lol)

Welps, that's all for today! Looking forward to posting some shadow looks tomorrow, so stay tuned. Have a lovely Thursday everyone!

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Back to my Bebe bodycon dress dilemma! I thought for sure I was going to go for the blue, but then I ended up trying these two in the boutique:

In the end, I decided to go with the white. I actually don't have a sexy white dress...though I have to be careful to wear neutral-colored underthings and to consume only light-colored food and drinks. Lol. I might end up going back to pick up this dress in every other color, however, haha!

My only gripe about the dress isn't really a gripe at all, I'm just too petite for it, therefore I need the straps taken up a bit. Off to alterations I go! Hope everyone's having a good Wednesday! :D

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

One of you tipped me off on an Urban Decay sale (thanks Jennifer!) and I ended up getting more stuff than I should have, lol. Check it out!

I ordered the lipstick in Midnight Cowboy, the "vintage" eyeshadow in Goddess (love the name!), got the Black Palette (been waiting for it to go on sale!), and chose the Pocket Rocket glosses in James, Timothy (which I got for my sister, actually), and Colin.

UD also "gifted" me with a limited edition lipstick cap. Pretty, to be sure, but a little useless, if you ask me. I'm guessing they're giving them away because no one wanted to buy them. It's high quality, heavyweight, and comes in it's own "coffin" lol! I thought the original cap was perfectly fine, however.

LOVE the glosses! Can't wait to share swatches, stay tuned and have a happy Tuesday!

Monday, August 13, 2012

Now that we have our sweet little house, my brain has been operating on overdrive trying to figure out ways to decorate. Fashion and makeup come easy to me, but, I admit, interior design is a completely different animal. Just because a certain table looks amazing and a certain chair looks great, doesn't mean that they'll work harmoniously together. You really have to have a sense of spatial organization and a knack for understanding which pieces (in which colors) balance each other out as opposed to competing with one another. It is HARD! I tried my hand at it a few years ago with my parents' house...it just ended up costing time and money and I threw in the towel and hired a professional interior designer in the end. I learned a thing or two, however, working with her and since hubby and I don't have the means to pay someone $$$$ to call the shots for us, I'm striving really hard to do the job myself. I'm so grateful and honored that my husband trusts me to furnish and decorate our home...however it makes me all the more nervous because I'm worried about messing up!

But enough yammering from me, I want to share what I've come up with so far. I've decided to begin with our formal dining room. I've spent the last few weeks hunting down the perfect pieces to create the look that I want for it...modern-vintage (does that make sense?) with French flair and a touch of shabby chic. I think I've got the ok to order everything today...check it out:

We have the original hardwood floors back from when the house was built in the '20's with latte colored walls and the original moldings in off-white. I just adore the way the muted blues, grays, and distressed off-white finishes complement each other! I'm so excited! Can't wait till everything comes in so I can share images of my actual dining room with you all! :D

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Y'all know I love being a feminine little girly-girl. But sometimes, when you've got a hot night out on the town planned, it's fun to transform into a bombshell just for a little bit, don't you agree? I saw this slinky little number at Bebe and ordered it in Fiery Red. I'm still waiting for it to come in, but while I was out the other day, I saw it at the boutique in True Blue. I HAD to try it on!

Super-sexy or what?! Lol, it's a little out of my comfort zone, so I'm both excited yet shy to wear it out. Can't wait to knock hubby's socks off on our next date night! I almost want BOTH colors now. I'm looking forward to showing off the red version to you guys! :D

*a few hours later*

I started this post during my lunch break and found the red version waiting for me when I got home:

It's a nearly-neon red-orange...not quite what I was expecting. The color seems a little too fluorescent for my iPhone camera to handle, so all the "bandage" detailing got blown out. I think I might exchange it for the blue, which I feel suits my coloring a little better. What do you think?

All in all, I find this dress design to be very flattering, comfortable, PLUS I just feel so darn foxy in it! I should rock it while I can so that I have no regrets during my youth, right? Lol. Hope everyone is having a super Saturday so far!

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Several weeks ago, I was at the hair salon, accompanying my husband for his haircut. I was waiting in the lounge space and picked up one of the ladies magazines and saw an awesome spread on floral printed pants. I actually took a picture of it with my iPhone to remind myself to get a pair!

So I did a web search and found these:

Perfection! Great price, great fit...I love that ASOS carries petite sizing for miniature girls like me! How is everyone else diggin' the printed pants trend? So good or no good? Just curious to know! :D

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

I admit, I'm a sucker for plaid. I especially love those button-downs that they sell at Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch. I have a ton of them in my closet. I simply adore the casual fit and feel, yet understatedly stylish look...like you rolled out of bed, pulled it on without thinking, and still ended up looking fabulous anyway. You know what I mean? I paired today's orchid and navy plaid, from Hollister, with Stella cropped jeggings from Express, and some cute, open-toed, boucle bow pumps by Madden Girl. To be honest, this outfit wasn't well thought out at all...I DID roll out of bed and just pulled on whatever was in my suitcase and ended up with this:

For those of you who aren't up to speed, I'm staying at my parents' house for the week since my husband is out of town on business. I only brought some flip-flops, lol, so I'm really lucky I was able to dig these heels out of the closet from when I used to live at home. I forgot how cute they were!

Hi everyone! I thought I'd share this really cool new hair styling tool that I got a chance to try out the other day. It's a revolutionary new teasing tool, specially designed to give your hair lots of volume with little effort. You know how I love big hair!

The folks over at teeze w/ eez were kind enough to send me some samples so that I could try out their awesome product. I must say, the teeze w/ eez did not disappoint!

The handle is ergonomically designed so that it feels natural and comfortable to hold and is made out of a soft, grippy material. I like how they included a cute little crystal embellishment for added sparkle! But the real star here is the way the teeth are, crimped, criss-crossed, and staggered so that you can easily tease your hair...it does most of the work for you; just a few short, gentle strokes will do the trick! I find that this method is not only efficient, but less damaging to my hair because it doesn't require a lot of force and repetition. Check out the results!

From flat and lifeless to tons of body, volume and lift! I'm not excited just because the teeze w/ eez was gifted to me, but because it really WORKS! I've been using it almost every day since I've gotten mine. Love it!

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

I found my perfect nude polish for the summer! When I had first received Kennedy by Zoya, I felt that it was a little too gray for my skin tone and I would often skip over it when choosing a nude polish. However, I found that applying a layer of Sinful's Glass Pink (my absolute favorite sheer shimmer of the moment) really brought out an extra dimension of pink sparkle, transforming a rather blah beige into a gorgeous, pinky-nude champagne shimmer! I'm sooooooooooo in love!

Hubby's in Seattle for a business trip so I'm crashing at my parents' place for the week. I only brought my Sleek palette so I've been having fun experimenting with different, versatile looks using the 12 colors included within it.

It's funny. I have a ridiculous amount of makeup, yet I'm learning that I probably don't need about 90% of it. But I suppose that's the case with most things...clothes, shoes, accessories, etc. Ah, what it is to be a girl...

Monday, August 6, 2012

Last evening, we celebrated my father's birthday with sushi! I wore a navy and white striped dress with a chiffon skirt that had a rather nautical feel to, I thought. I paired it with red velvet pumps and Kate Moss-inspired makeup that I saw in a Glamour magazine.

The dress came from the Petite collection from ASOS and the shoes are by Qupid. Aren't they awesome?! I've always wanted a pair of good red shoes...brings David Bowie's "Let's Dance" to mind, don't you agree?

Dark, corner-smokey eye and bright pink lip. I fully understand that no amount of makeup will transform me into the lovely Miss Moss, but I really liked this look and went about creating my own version of it. :)